Machine for making hard sheet fiber.



G. MEHLUMQ MACHINE FOR MAKING HARD SHEET FIBER.

APPLIOATION FILED 00123, 1913.

Patented'Jan. 12, 1915.

2 SHQETS-SHEET 1.

Wfigya THE NORRIS PETERS CO. PHOTO-LITHO.. WASHINGTON. D. C.

GLMBHLUM.

MAGHINE FOR MAKING HARD SHEET FIBER.

APPLIGATION FILED 0UT.'23, 1913.

Patented Jan. 12, 1915.

THE NORRIS PETERS C0,, PHOTOJJTHQ, WASHINGTON. D. C.

UNITE, STAES PATENT curios.

CASPER MEHLUM, OF CAMBRIDGE, MASSACHUSETTS.

MACHINE FOR MAKING HART) SHEET FIBER.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, OAsPER MEHLUM, a subject of the King of Norway, residing at Cambridge, county of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Machines for Making Hard Sheet Fiber, of which the following is a specification, reference being had therein to the accompanying drawings.

In the manufacture of hard sheet fiber as heretofore practised it has been customary to first form a pulp and then to form this pulp into a web or sheet run on a. roll and from this roll to rewind it on a mandrel for a sufiicient number of layers or windings to make a tube of the thickness required for the hard fiber. After the tube has been built up to the requisite thickness by successive layers of the thin web of fiber, the tube or cylinder thus formed is slashed lengthwise of the mandrel and the slit tube being removed from the mandrel is flattened out and pressed to form a flat sheet. It is found by experience that by building the fiber up in the form of a tube and then slashing it and flattening it out it can be formed of only a very limited thickness. There has been, however, a constantly growing demand for hard sheet fiber for various uses of a considerably greater thickness than it has been possible to make by the method above described.

The object of the present invention is to produce a machine whereby flat sheets or blocks of fiber may be formed of very much 7 greater thickness than can be produced by the previous methods described.

Briefly, it consists of an apparatus by which the sheet is built up in original flat form instead of first building it in cylindii cal form and then slitting and flattening it.

The invention will. be understood from the following description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings and the novel features thereof will be pointed out and clearly defined in theclaims at the close of the specification.

In the drawings,Figure 1 is a side elevation of a machine embodying the invention. Fig. 2 is a front elevation of the machine shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 3 is a plan of the table at the end of its forward feed stroke, showing it in engagement with the cam block which raises the feed roll. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing the feed roll, table,

and web of fiber in the position they occupy at the beginning of a stroke. Fig. 5 is a side, view of a portion of the machine showing the feed roll elevated by the cam block to permit the retrograde movement of the table after the forward stroke. Fig. 6 is an enlarged sectional detail View showing the operation of the knives. L i i Referring now to the drawings, 1 represents the frame or bed of the machine.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Jan. 12, 1915. Application filed October 23, 1913. Serial No. 796,932. I i

2 represents the Web or'sheet which is roll and .a presser roll which carries the web of fiber around onto a flat table 9 which has a reciprocating movement for a stroke equal in length to the circumference of the feed roll 8. The ends of the roll are provided with heads having tubularjournals 31 and the roll is heated by steam introduced through the tubular journals by pipes 68. These pipes 68 are flexible to allow for the rise and fall of the roll. Means are provided for cutting the web length.- wise'of the feed roll 8 once at each rotation of the said roll so that sheets equal in length to the circumference of the roll 8 will be formed and will be superposed one upon another upon the table 9 and pressed together by the roll 8 as the table I travels beneath the roll, said roll 8, being journaled in vertically movable bearings'so that the roll 8 may be liftedafter the table has moved inone direction under the pres sure roll, to allow the table to return without interference with theroll, and also to allow for the building up of the sheet. This mechanism will be now more particularly described. I

The tatble 9 is preferably made of metal and also hollow to permit the introduction of steam through the pipe 10 for the purpose of warming the table. This table is fixedly mounted upon rails 11, 11, eXtending lengthwise of the table, said railseach resting upon a series of rolls 12 which are pivoted in standards 13 mounted upon the base of the machine. Said rolls 12 are each formed with peripheral flanges 14, 14, thereby forming a grooved way toreceive the foot of therail 11, and thereby forming guides for the travel of the rails and supported table 9. Means are provided for giving to the rails 11 and the table 9 mounted fixedly thereon reciprocable movement equal in length at each forward and each back stroke a distance equal to the circumference of the roll 8. The means as shown are as follows: A lever 15 is pivoted at one end to a lug 16 secured to the under side of the table at one end thereof, the other end of said lever 15. being pivoted at 17 to one end of a lever 18, the other end of said lever 18 being pivoted at 19 to a hanger 20 which is supported from the overhead frame work 21. Said lever 18 is pivotally connected at 22 with one end of the crank lever 23, the other end of said crank lever 23 having a pivot c0nneotion at 24 with a gear wheel 25 journaled at 26 in hearings in a hanger 27 supported from the overhead frame 21. Said gear 25 meshes with a pinion 28 mounted on a shaft 2:9, said shaft also carrying a driving pulley 3.0. The train of gearing is of such proportions that the table 9 will be reciprocated at each stroke in either direction a distance equal to the circumference of the roll 8 as already described. It is obvious that any suitable train of gearing or other mechanism may be adopted for giving reciprocation to the table 9 which will be an equivalent for the reciprocating mechanism already described.

The feed roll or cylinder 8 is provided with journals 31 journaled in the bearing blocks 32 which are respectively hung by chains or other flexible connections 33 from wheels 34 mounted on opposite ends of a shaft 35. Said shaft 35 is journaled in the levers 52 fulcrumed at one end on shaft 53, the other end of each lever resting on the upper end of a rod 50, as will be hereinafter eX plained. Said chains or flexible connections 33 are made fast at one end to said wheels 34 so that the said chains will wind around the wheels to raise or lower the said blocks -wheel 69 on the shaft 35 whereby the said shaft 35 and therefore the wheels 34 may be rotated if desired, said shaft 38 being provided with a hand wheel 39 whereby the shaft may be rotated at the will of the op erator when desired, as for instance to lower the feed roll 8 down to the table after a built up sheet or block has been removed so. as to start a new sheet. In the usual operation of the machine, however, during the building-up of the sheet the necessary raising and lowering of the feed roll 8 and its bearings will be accomplished automatically. Mountedon the shaft 38 is a sheave 40. to which is secured one end of a rope 41, said rope passing up over a pulley 42' which is journaled in hearings in the hanger 43 hung from the overhead support 21, and the end of said rope 4 is secured to a weight 44 which has the effect of taking up the slack which is occasioned by the slight increase in thickness of the sheet being built up after each ply is laid on. That is, at each time after a ply has been laid on the sheet being built up on the table, as the roll 8 drops'down it will not drop so low as before by a distance equal to the thickness of the ply. This will tend to leave a slack in the chain 33 by just so much as occasioned by the thickness of the ply. In order to take up this slack the chain wheels 34 should be slightly turned, and this is done by the weight 44 which pulls the rope 41 and thence turns the shaft 38 and worm 37 to turn the worm wheel 69 and wheels 34.

Rising from the base of the machine on each side of the table 9 is a standard 45, and from the inner face of each of said standards 45 there project the slotted lugs 46, 4(3 which serve as supports and guideways for the slidable cam blocks 47. Said cam blocks are each formed with. a hump or elevated flat portion 48 reached from one end by an inclined face 49. A vertically movable rod 50 is pivotally connected at its lower end with a roll 51 which rests upon said cam block 47 and its upper end supports one end of the lever bearing 52 in which the shaft 35 and the chain wheel 34 are journaled, as previously described, so that as said vertical rod 50 moves upward it will lift the free end of the lever bearing 52 and turn it upward, thereby lifting the wheel 34 and the bearing blocks 32 and feed roll 8. The said rod 50 passes through suitable guides, as for instance 54, 54. Projecting from the inner face of each of the cam blocks 47 is a lug 55.

Projecting from the outer edge of the table 9 on both sides near the forward end. are lugs 56 and projecting from the same edges of the table 9 near the rear end are lugs 57. Near the end of the forward movement of the table the lugs 57 will engage the lugs 55 and slide the cam block 47 forward in its guides, causing the inclined face 49 of the cam block to ride under the roll 51 and thereby lift the roll 51 up onto the flat elevated portion 48 of the cam block, and thereby turn up the lever bearing 52 and the bearing blocks 32, and thus raise nearly the end of its backward stroke when the lug will engage the lug 55 and push the cam block 47 backward, allowing the roll 5-1 to follow down the inclined face 49 as the. weight of the bearing blocks 32 will be sufficient to pull down the lever bearing 52 by gravity and bring the feed roll 8 down in contact with the sheet, and the weight A l will take up the slack of the chain 33 as already described.

Extending lengthwise of the feed roll 8 slightly clearing the periphery of the roll is a stationary blade 58 mounted at each end in suitable supports 59. Means are provided by which the said blade 58 may be adjusted to a greater or less distance from the roll 8. For instance, as shown, the bearings 59 are each formed with a slot 60 to receive the ends of the blade 58, the blade being clamped therein by a clamp screw 61 which passes through the wall of the bearing 59 and a stop screw 62 passes through the outer end of the bearing 59 and impinges on the back of the blade 58, said stop being adjustable to limit the outward adjustment of the blade 58 and prevent it from being pushed back by the pressure of the other blade during the cutting operation. Preferably this blade 58 is made of a broad obtuse angled V- shape so that the sheet will be sheared off gradually instead of being cut instantly.

The feed roll 8 is formed with a peripheral slot 63 lengthwise of the roll with in which is a blade 64:. At each end of the said blade 64 there is secured one end of a spring 65, the other end of said spring being secured to the head of the feed roll 8, the tension of said springs 65 being such as to normally hold the blade 6& down within the slot in the feed roll without projecting beyond the periphery of the feed roll. Cam plates 66 are mounted on the frame at each end of the feed roll in such position that a cam face 67 will during the rotation of the feed roll be engaged by the projecting end of the blade 6 L just before it reaches the stationary blade 58 and push the blade 6A outward in the slot so that its cutting edge projects beyond the periphery of the feed roll and thereby engages the film of fiber on the periphery of the feed roll, the cutting edge of the fixed blade 58 thereby causing the sheet of fiber to be cut crosswise by the shearing blades already described. By the use of the angular shaped blade 58 as described the cutting will begin at the two outside edges and cut simultaneously toward the middle, forming a V-shaped out. As soon as the blade 64: in the rotation of the feed roll rides past the cam 66, the pull of the spring 65 will pull the blade 64 into the slot within the periphery of the feed roll. The stationary knife is located slightly above the table so that the cutting takes place shortly before the line of the cut of the sheet reaches the table and just before the end of the forward movement of the table. The rear end of the portion cut o'fi will be pressed down onto the table or onto the partially built up sheet already formed, as the table completes its forward stroke.

The web back of the cut will naturally adhere to the periphery of the feed roll even after it is out until it reaches the table. As soon as the end of the web just back of the portion cut off reaches the table and begins to pass between the lower surface of the feed roll and the table, the feed roll will have been dropped into its lowermost position so that it will by, its own weight press the web against the table or against the uppermost ply already on the table. The mechanism for actuating the table 9 is adjusted, as already described so that as soon as the table has completed its forward movement, and the sheet already cut off has been laid down, the table will return and be in vposition to receive the new advance end of the web and the roll 8 will oomedown into pressing engagement with it. Thetable will then move forward a full stroke carrying forward the web which as it is pressed down by the feed roll will move with the table and draw the web from the roll 7 as already described until the table reaches the end of its forward stroke. Just before it reaches the forward end of its stroke-the web. will be cut by the blades as already described. At the end of the forward stroke the feed roll is lifted by the cam l7, actuated by the lug 57 on the table engaging with the lug 55 on the cam block 47. The table 9 then will move on its backward stroke but the feed roll 8 will not rotate becausethere is no frictional contact between the table and the periphery of the feed roll. When the table is moved its backward stroke and the cam block 47 has been moved so as to bringthe feed roll down into contact with the new end of the web the table will move forward again and the web of fiber will be fed forward, superimposing another layer upon the first layer until the end is cut off when the operation. already described will be repeated.

VVhatI claim is:

1. In a machine for making sheet fiber, by 110 building it up with successive layers of fiber,- a reciprocable element having a flat surface on which the sheet is built up, a rotary presser roll above said flat surface yieldingly mounted in bearings which allow 11: movement toward and from said flat surface, said presser roll acting also as a feed roll for feeding a web of fiber-between said fiat surface element andsaid presser roll, and means'for sliding said fiat surface while 120 the presser roll presses the web of fiber on said fiat surface.

2. In a machinefor making sheet fiber by building it up with successive layers of fiber, a flat reciprocable table on which the sheet 125 is built up, a rotary feed roll which carries the web of fiber to the table, means for-reciprocating the table beneath said feed roll, said feed roll serving also as a "presser roll which presses each successive layer of fiber 1 onto the plies on which it is superimposed, and) means for severing each layer from the we 3. In a machine for making sheet fiber by building it up with successive sheets of fiber, a flat reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up, a rotary feed roll which carries a web of fiber to the table, means for reciprocating the table beneath said feed roll, said feed roll serving also as a presser roll which presses each successive layer of fiber onto the sheets on which it is superimposed, and means for severing theweb at each rotation of the said roll thereby forming successive sheets equal in length to the circumference of the feed roll.

4. In a machine for making sheet fiber by building it up with successive plies of fiber, a rotary feed roll which carries the web of fiber to the table, means for reciprocating the table beneath said feed roll, said feed roll serving also as a presser roll which presses each successive layer of fiber onto the sheets on which it is superimposed, means for severing the web at each rotation of the said roll thereby forming successive sheets equal in length to the circumference of the feed roll, and means for raising the said feed roll out of contact with the topmost sheet on the table at the end of each forward stroke of the table and maintaining it in an elevated position during the backward movement of the table.

5. In a machine for making sheet fiber, a flat reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up with successive plies of fiber, a rotary presser roll journaled above said table and adapted to engage with the table, said presser roll acting also as a feed roll for feeding a web of fiber onto the table beneath the presser roll, means for reciprocating said table whereby during the movement in one direction the plies of fiber between the table and the presser roll will be pressed together, and means for severing the web for each successive layer.

6. In a machine for making sheet fiber, a

fiatreciprocable table on which the sheet is built up with successive sheets of fiber, a rotary presser roll journaled above said table and adapted to engage with the table, said presser roll acting also as a feed roll for feeding a web of fiber onto the table beneath the presser roll, means for reciprocating said table whereby during its movement in one direction the plies of fiber between the table and the presser roll will be pressed together, means for severing the web for each successive ply, and means for raising said presser roll out of engagement with the sheet on the table at the end of the forward movement and retaining it in its elevated position during the backward movement of the table.

7. In a machine for making sheet fiber, a

flat reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up with successive layers of fiber, a rotary presser roll journaled above said table and adapted to engage with the table, said presser roll acting also as a feed roll for feeding a web of fiber onto the table beneath the presser roll, means for reciprocating said table whereby during the movement in one direction the layers of fiber between the table and the presser roll will be pressed together, means for raising said presser roll out of engagement with the sheet on the table at the end of the forward movement and retaining it in its elevated position during the backward movement, and means for severing the web of fiber at each rotation of the presser roll to form sheets.

8. In a machine for making sheet fiber, a flat reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up with successive plies of fiber, a rotary presser roll journaled above said table and adapted to engage with the table, said presser roll acting also as a feed roll for feeding a web of fiber onto the table beneath the presser roll, means for reciprocating said table whereby during the movement in one direction the plies of fiber between the table and the presser roll will be pressed together, means for raising said presser roll out of engagement with the sheet on the table at the end of the forward movement and retaining it in its elevated position during the back ward movement, and means controlled by the movement of the presser roll to cut successive sheets from the web of uniform length.

9. In a machine for making sheet fiber, a flat reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up with successive plies of fiber, a rotary feed roll over the table which feeds the web of fiber onto the table and under the feed roll, said feed roll being journaled in vertically movable bearings above the table, means for reciprocating the table whereby when the table moves in one direction the web will be clamped by the feed roll to the table and will transmit rotary movement to the feed roll, means for severing the web of fiber at each rotation of the feed roll, means for lifting the feed roll from engagement with the sheet on the table before the return stroke of the table and maintaining it in its elevated position during said return stroke, and means whereby the feed roll is again lowered into pressing engagement with the sheet on the table for another feed movement.

10. In a machine for making sheet fiber, a flat reciprocable table on which the board is built up with successive plies of fiber, a rotary feed roll over the table which feeds the web of fiber onto the table and under the feed roll, said feed roll being journaled in vertically movable bearings above the table,

-means for reciprocating the table whereby when the table moves in one direction the web will be clamped by the feed roll to the table and will transmit rotary movement 'to the feed roll, means for severing the web of fiber at each rotation of the feed roll, means for lifting the feed roll from engagement with the sheet on the table before the return stroke of the table and maintaining it in its elevated position during said return stroke, and means whereby the feed roll is again lowered into pressing engagement with the sheet on the table for another feed movement, the actuating mechanism for the table being so regulated that the length of stroke of the table in each direction will be equal to the circumference of said feed roll.

11. In a machine for making sheet fiber, a flat reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up by a succession of plies of fiber, a rotary feed roll over the table which feeds the Web of fiber onto the table and under the feed roll, said feed roll being journaled in vertically movable bearings above the table, means for reciprocating the table whereby when the table moves in one direction the feed roll will press the web on the table and thereby transmit rotary movement to the feed roll, a vertically movable support for the bearings of the feed roll, means for severing the web for each successive ply, a cam, means whereby the table actuates the cam near the end of the forward feed movement, intermediate connections whereby said movement of the cam elevates the said feed roll bearings, and means whereby the table near the end of its return movement moves the cam to release the said feed roll bearings from the elevated position and allows the feed roll to again engage with the sheet on the table.

12. In a machine for making sheet fiber, a flat reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up with successive layers of fiber, a rotary feed roll over the table which feeds the web of fiber onto the table and under the feed roll, said feed roll being journaled in vertically movable bearings above the table, means for reciprocating the table whereby when the table moves in one direction the web will be gripped by the feed roll to the table and will transmit rotary movement to the feed roll, a stationary blade mounted alongside of the periphery of the feed roll, the feed roll being formed with a longitudinal slot in the periphery thereof, a movable blade set into said slot, springs which normally hold said blade sunk in said slot below the surface of the periphery, and means which move said blade outwardly in said slot at a predetermined point in the rotation of the feed roll when in its rotation it comes opposite the said stationary blade and retains said movable lmife in position to co operate with said stationary blade to sever the web, said springs causing the retraction of said movable blade into the slot in the roll after the movable blade has ridden past the I tion the web will be gripped by the feed roll to the table and will transmit rotary movement to the feed roll, a stationary blade mounted alongside of the periphery of the feed roll, the feed roll being formed with a longitudinal slot in the periphery thereof, a movable blade set into said slot, springs which normally hold said blade sunk in said slot below the surface of the periphery, and

means which move said blade outwardly in said slot at a predetermined point in the rotation of the feed roll when in its rotation it comes opposite the said stationary blade and retains said movable lmife in position to cooperate with said stationary blade to sever the web, said springs causing the retraction of said movable blade into the slot in the roll after the movable blade has ridden past the stationary blade, means for lifting the feed roll from engagement with the sheet on the table before the return stroke of the table and maintaining it in its elevated position during said return stroke, and means whereby'the feed roll is again lowered into pressing engagement with the sheet on the table for another feed movement.

1 14:. In a machine for making hard sheet fiber, a reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up with successive layers of fiber, a roll journaled above the table which feeds the web of fiber onto the table, means for for severing the 'web of fiber at each ro-- tion of the feed roll.

15. In a machine for making sheet fiber by building it up with successive plies of fiber, a reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up, a rotary feed roll which carries the web to the table and beneath the .feed roll, means for reciprocating said table beneath the feed roll, said feed roll normally resting on the top ply and serving as a resser roll during the forward movement of the table and fiber, means for severing the web for each successive ply, vertically mov able mountings for the feed roll whereby the feed roll is permitted to be raised and lowered, a vertically movable support having a flexible connection with the mountings for the feed roll, and means actuated by the movement of the table to raise said flexibly connected support and thereby raise the feed roll.

16. In a machine for making sheet fiber by building it up with successive plies of fiber, a reciprocable table on which the sheet is built up, a rotary feed roll which carries the web to the table and beneath the feed roll, means for reciprocating said table beneath the feed roll, said feed roll normally resting on the top ply and serving as a presser roll during the forward movement of the table and fiber, means for severing the web for each successive ply, vertically movable mountings for the feed roll whereby the feed roll is permitted to be raised and lowered, a vertically movable support having a flexible connection with the mountings for the feed roll, means actuated by the movement of the table to raise said flexibly connected support and thereby raise the feed roll, and means for taking up the slack in the flexible connection of the said mountings due to the shortening of the downward movement as the sheet is built up.

In testimony whereof I aiflx my signature in presence of two witnesses.

WILLIAM A. COPELAND, ALICE H. MORRISON.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Iatents. Washington, 1). ill. 

